How can I catch a pregnant feral cat that's having birthing complications?
The background to why is a long story, but basically my mother feeds a few feral cats out of her garage. We occasionally can catch one or two and have gotten them spayed but it's impossible to keep up. One of last years kittens became pregnant this spring and is having severe problems. We have found one kitten dead (in it's birthing sac), another dead (we're not sure it survived birthing tho it had been cleaned and in the box she was in), and she now appears to have a kitten (or something) stuck in her birthing canal. I have not seen her since yesterday afternoon but at the last point I saw her it had been stuck like that for at least 16 hours.
I want to try to catch her but I don't want to stress her further. I hate to just let nature take its course but I may have to, I wondered what the odds of her surviving this without a vet's intervention were and whether anyone had tips on trying to catch her.
Any help would be appreciated
offer it a hundred dollars. that would work for me
April 21st, 2007 at 4:06 am
it wil take patience and time, but get her some nice food and milk and sit still, she will came to you if you dont chase her or get up to quick.
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April 21st, 2007 at 4:09 am
offer it a hundred dollars. that would work for me
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April 21st, 2007 at 4:28 am
When I was working with stray cats, we used a special box to catch the cats. You put some food inside the box, and when the cat enters, the door falls down. Maybe you could borrow this form a vet or a shelter?
The cat needs help. They will both die if the kitten is not removed from her birth canal.
At this point I don't think you should even think about not causing the cat more stress. It's vital for the mother that the kitten is removed.
If you can not get a box, get someone to help you to catch the cat. When you have, remove the kitten. See how the mother is doing and if she is fine let her rest. If not, take her to the vet for a check up. Maybe it's more dead kittens inside of her.
PS: it's normal for a female cat to loose all her first kittens. Normally they are too small and weak to live.
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April 21st, 2007 at 4:30 am
You should immediatly contact your local vetrinarian and get your cat to the vet immediatly!
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April 21st, 2007 at 4:46 am
Think about how much it has cost to feed all these cats in the past. With a good cat trap, you could be preventing the kittens, I would probably hire two or three cage traps.
You have taken so long to address the real problem that it will take a while to catch and desex the animals you are willing to keep and care for. You must admit you need real help… Find and enlist the help of the local RSPCA, SPCA, or feline/cat rescue group. You can't possibly keep them all, allow some of them to find real homes and just bring back the ones that won't be tamed. Keep setting the traps and deal with any new arrivals on an individual basis in the future.
If you don't do something now the population will have an impact on neighbours and the wildlife around your Mum's home. When a cat is just pregnant she can still be desexed, it's sad but a lot better than the kittens being born wild.
The best food to use in a cat trap should be smelly, or really yummy. Try a piece of wild rabbit, sardines or a cod fish head. Visit the local market and ask to see their fish or meat scraps, cats love lamb liver/fry.
I hope you can help the she cat having a bad labour, don't be hard on yourself if the vet says to euthanaese and please don't stop with this one cat.
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April 21st, 2007 at 7:56 am
Whatever happens and whatever you decide to do, know that you've done everything you can to make her life easier. It's hard with the feral cats to see them suffering- that's how I ended up with nine! God bless you for all your hard work and care. It's painful and awful to see what humans will do to defenseless animals.
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